Fruit of the Spirit: Gentleness

Memory Verse: Proverbs 15:1
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Gentleness - Banana

What does it mean?
A humble and gently attitude. Having no desire for revenge. Willingness to suffer injury or insult rather than hurt someone else. Being teachable, not being proud. Not having a know-it-all attitude.

How does Jesus show us an example?
Jesus was meek. He was the One True King, yet He was born in a lowly stable. He didn't exalt Himself, but always gave God the glory. I read the Secret Service story from Keys for Kids and we talked about that.

How can we show gentleness?
Not demanding all the glory, but giving all the praise and glory to God. Not getting angry toward others, but showing kindness to them as Jesus would. Not insisting you are right all the time.

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show gentleness on two dye cut bananas. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the bananas from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of gentleness the previous week. (see first photo for banana tree)

A last minute quick trip to Houston - Part 2

Quilt market presentation sessions started on Friday, so we arrived at the convention center without getting lost (I was the one driving, so that explains why were didn't get lost! Although someone else might disagree with that! :)). We picked up our name-tags, met up with some Bernina staff, helped set up sewing machine for classes and then hung around the convention center for the rest of the day.

Saturday we walked and walked and walked the aisles all day. George Brown Convention Center is huge and there are rows and rows of vendors with their individual displays of fabric, patterns, notions, magazines and anything else related to quilting. One thing I do love about going to market, beside the fact of being able to see the newest fabrics and notions, are all the samples that decorate each booth. Just the samples and different techniques used give me so many ideas for various projects!

You can read more on the quilting/embroidery aspects of our trip on my embroidery blog here and here.

Joanna and I

We went back to High Fashion Fabrics Saturday evening since we now knew just how to get there. Actually it was a little different route since we were traveling from the convention center instead of our hotel. But I had planned ahead and that morning before leaving the hotel, pulled up several tabs on Google Maps for how to get from the convention center to High Fashion and then how to get from High Fashion back to the hotel.

It was only a couple of blocks from the convention center so we found it without any problem, but getting back to the hotel was a different story. I had that map on the computer, but for some reason the streets we were passing were not on that map! We ended up driving back to the convention center and then back to our hotel. We discovered that in our map planning for the week, we were so excited to get to where we were going that we always had a map of how to get there, but not always a map to get back. You would think that you would go back the way you came, but in downtown Houston there are so many one way streets that that is not always possible!

There's several things we learned about Houston - (1) their streets are just strange with all the one-way directions, (2) they have really short blocks, (3) they have the longest red lights we have ever been stopped at and (4) they have u-turn only lanes! The u-turn only lanes are quite hilarious because u-turns are legal in Texas anywhere. So why would you have u-turn only lanes??

At the convention center, you have to turn left at a stoplight to enter the parking garage. We always stopped at the light and it would take forever to turn green. In fact we never did see that light turn green - ever. The car ahead of us finally turned left on a red light, which I proceeded to do as well since the light was not changing. We learned later the guy in the car ahead of us asked a policeman if that light ever turned green, because he never saw it change either. The policeman said yes, it did and if you turned on a red light, you could get a ticket. So the better thing was to go to the next intersection (remember blocks are short, so it was only a few yards) and make a u-turn and then you would be turning right into the parking garage. So that's exactly what we did!

Really you can't fault us for all the traffic difficulties we had; it was the city we were in. Between all the one-way streets, short blocks, long red lights and u-turns, the city of Houston was definitely the cause of all our driving around.

Sunday morning we dropped by the convention center one last time to say our good-byes to Jeanne, Debbie and others at the Bernina booth and then headed for home. 12 hours is not nearly so long when you have someone to travel with and spend the time visiting and sharing. Not only did we enjoy the time spent in Houston (except for the driving around in circles part!), but also the encouragement we are to each other! It's amazing to see how God brought us together less than a year ago and how our friendship has grown since then.

me, Jeanne Delpit from Bernina, Joanna

Joanna and I are alike in so many ways; we are both uniquely normal. Not only are we unusually young to be sewing/quilting/embroidery professional teachers and to also be so involved in that as a hobby as well as a business, but even in our personalities and thinking we are very similar. I'm so thankful God brought such a wonderful friend into my life and the encouragement and challenge we are to each other both in our sewing endeavors as well as in our spiritual lives!

We have some fun memories from our trip such as my making plans to make plans (I have a feeling someone will never let me forget that!), stumbling upon Sally's Beauty Supply, driving around Houston and a few other details that only seem funny to us. But as Joanna told me on the phone in the very beginning, she didn't think I would look back on the time spent in Houston and regret going. To which she is exactly correct!

Remembering two years ago

It's almost hard to believe that it has been two years from today that Mom passed away. In some ways it seems just yesterday that I called Krissa at school telling her to come home because Mom wouldn't be here much longer. I can still see Grandma walking through the front door after we returned home with Mom from the doctor's office and making the decision to let Mom go.

Those last few days that Mom was here on earth are still very vivid in my mind. Many of those things I won't ever forget nor do I really desire to. Yes, it was a difficult time and there are moments that I can't look back on those days without tears in my eyes, but those last couple of months spent with Mom are memories I will treasure forever.

In other ways it seems like it's been quite a while since I've seen Mom working in the kitchen, sitting outside reading or calling me to come upstairs because the computer was doing something strange. Life is normal now without Mom. There's still is and will always be a slight emptiness in our family, but I can honestly say that God has filled the void that was felt so greatly right after Mom was gone. Philippians 4:19, "But my God shall supply all your need, according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. "

God has been so gracious and faithful over the past two years! Without His strength and encouragement I can't even begin to imagine what the last two years might have been like. He brought people into our lives just when we needed them. The "missing Mom" moments have become fewer as the months go by, although there are events, phrases and little things that are reminders of Mom.

Time does heal, but you still never forget.

A last minute quick trip to Houston - Part 1

This morning I opened my notebook in church I use for taking notes and notice that I'm dating today's for November 2nd and my last page was October 12th - three weeks ago. And just now as I looked at my blog, my last blog post was October 19th - two weeks ago. After a couple of crazy weeks, I think I'm back on schedule! :)

Joanna had planned to come out to my house and spend a few days with me the week of October 20th. Oddly enough we chose the week to get together the same week as the Houston Quilt Market; totally unplanned by the way. :)

So Tuesday afternoon, I'm sitting in front of my sewing machine, hemming a pair of jeans and my phone rings. Joanna is on the other end, saying that she thinks we should travel to Houston this week to attend quilt market. I, being the planned and scheduled person that I am, told her that's a crazy idea! We have to plan those things in advance.

I mean, I hadn't planned to go to Houston. We had no hotel hotel booked and finding one a couple days before/during market could be a hopeless possibility. Plus I had a funeral dinner to help with the next day, Sunday School to teach on Sunday and quilting class to teach on Monday. And on top of that, a 12 hour trip to Houston just wasn't in my plans.

After talking the issue back and forth for a while, planning what we would need to do, contacting Jeanne at Bernina to get into market, making sure it was ok with Dad (Who, to my surprise didn't think I was totally crazy (only slightly!) for a last minute trip!) and getting substitutes to work for Joanna on Monday and me to teach SS, I agreed to go. I have never in all my life made such a long trip adventure with less than 24 hours notice. I guess there is always a first and I have to admit it was exciting with all the last minute details. Although I still like to plan it or at least plan to plan it!

Wednesday morning came and I felt like I was constantly running from one thing to the next. As soon as I discovered we actually were leaving, I started running around trying to get packed, orders shipped, email answered, hotel booked, our route planned and whatever else done that came to mind. By the time I finished packing, finally found a hotel room, attended the funeral, helped with the dinner (which was a large and busy one!), came home, loaded up the car and started traveling, I felt like I had been on a 24 hour marathon.

And to think 24 hours before, I was calmly hemming jeans, not having a clue we would be driving to quilt market! :)

We arrived at the hotel we booked in Houston on Thursday afternoon, only to discover it had outside doors, didn't look the greatest and wasn't in the best area of town. Since our room was not yet ready, we went back out to the car, hooked up to the net (wireless Internet is fantastic!), booked a different hotel and looked on Google for directions to get there (Thank goodness for computers, the Internet and cell phones!).

Once we checked into the hotel where we decided we would stay (it was nicer and in a much better area of town in addition to inside doors!), I called and canceled our room at the previous hotel. When I called Dad and told him we were checked in and what we had done, he just couldn't believe it! But just see how technology can be used?! He said he prefered a paper map to which I totally disagree! :)

We decided to visit a couple of fabric shops and what an adventure that was! We pulled up several browser tabs with Google maps for how to get to each one, took my computer and hopped in the car. We found It's A Stitch without any problem, but when it came time to find High Fashion Fabrics, that was a different story. We ended up driving around all over the same area over and over for about two hours, partly because (1) we didn't go far enough on the M street the very first time, (2) we ended up off the map half of the time and (3) the streets are just strange in Houston.

Plus it was rush hour so traffic was increasing, it was starting to get dark and my car kept dying. We decided my car didn't like Joanna since she was the one driving! It would always start again, but it was rather annoying, especially when you didn't know when it would happen. We did finally find High Fashion, but by the time we arrived they were closed. Yep, that's usually how it works!

We started back to the hotel, taking what I thought would be a short cut, but it turned out we ended up going in several large circles. And then we were totally off the map, so it was just a guess what street we were supposed to be on and what direction we were supposed to be going. And we were so excited about getting to the fabric shops, that we didn't even pull up any Google maps for how to get back. Brilliant, yeah I know!

By the time we arrived back at the hotel, we were ever so glad to be there. Looking back on that adventure is funny now, (Especially since Joanna was laughing at me holding my computer upside down and sideways as I gave her directions! She thought it was so funny seeing it instead of just reading about it!) but at the time we were so tired of driving in circles. My mind was so spent after all that trying to figure out where we were, I couldn't even name the streets anymore. I just told Joanna to turn on the H street or turn right right here, even if we had driven on that one several times already. And that just made the situation all the more funny several days later.

And just think - all of that was before quilt market even started! More to come from our trip...

Fruit of the Spirit: Faithfulness

Memory Verse: II Timothy 2:13
If we are faithless, He remains faithful. He cannot deny Himself.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Faithfulness - Grapes

What does it mean?
Loyalty and trustworthiness, sticking to the truth, staying true and honest with God, being obedient to God's Word. Consistent in performing duties or services to others. It's not always easy. It requires making a decision and the doing it, no matter what you feel like doing.

How does Jesus show us an example?
Matthew 25:14-29 - the parable of the talents. We did a little skit acting out the three servants in the parable that Jesus told. I gave servant one 5 talents, servant two 2 talents and servant three one talent. They were to go out and make use of their talents and then when the master returned after giving them the talents, they were supposed to multiply them. (The kids had fun acting this out, especially when the third servant had to give his talent to the first servant! - see photos below!)

I clipped a name tag on each of the servants and then they were supposed to run about the gym looking for their colored egg holding more talents. To watch them running around was just too fun looking for their talents or rather coins I had in the eggs. As each one found their own, they came back and we opened up the eggs to reveal how their talents multiplied. It turned out to be an excellent way to illustrate an example of faithfulness that Jesus taught in the New Testament.

How can we show faithfulness?
What are some ways you can show faithfulness this week? If we are faithful in the small things, God gives us bigger things in which to be faithful. You should be faithful to do what your parents to tell you to do or expect you to do everyday. If you tell someone you will do something, you need to go ahead and do it. Be faithful to be on time to school and church.

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show faithfulness on two dye cut grapes. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the grapes from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of faithfulness the previous week. (see first photo for grape tree or pretend vine)

memory verse time!

picking the tree from last week!

"hmmm....what did you do to show goodness last week?"

"What did you do with your talents?"

Tackling this month: The oven!

My cleaning task for the month of October is the oven! For several weeks I've had on my list to clean the oven and I decided that was top priority this month! Since I made a quick trip to Houston, I actually ran short of time this month, but with only a few hours left in the month, I finally had a clean oven!

Just look at all that grease and blackened stuff!

The oven is a self-cleaning oven, but that doesn't mean the cooktop is self-cleaning. And that is the hardest part to clean! I have this love-hate relationship with the smooth cooktop. It's much easier to clean spills and I love the smooth space it provides, but...

But it is much harder to control the heat with the burners. It takes longer to heat, does not keep a consistent temp. and takes longer to cool down. Not only that, but if you spill the littlest thing, even a pan boiling over with just a teaspoon of water, it burns it to the cooktop. And since you can't clean it off until it's cool, you (1) have to wait a while to clean it up and (2) it takes a bit of scrubbing to get it off once it is burned on.

Burned water spot on one of the burners.

It is easier to clean since you don't have the element coils, drip bowls and such as our old oven, but whatever boils over and burns on is no easy task either! You have to be cautious what cleaners are used on the glass cooktop so it is not scratched, but I finally ordered one from GE that after lots of soaking and scrubbing finally gets it off.

It took several times using the Cerama Bryte on the glass top and the glass door inside the oven to finally get it clean. I also soaked it in warm, soapy water to help to loosen the tough spots. And even then I had to scrap some of it off with a small blade to get it clean. But get it clean, I did...completely clean and looking just like the day we brought it home!

I even had Dad pull the oven out from the wall and cabnets so I could clean behind and on the sides. Needless to say I found several of Skittles toys she lost months ago under that oven. As a little kitten (she sometime still is!), she batted her toys under the oven with her paw.

the cooktop clean and ready to use!

The oven is self-cleaning, so the inside pretty much cleans itself. I did brush out the burned parts and just rinse the bottom and sides with water after the cleaning cycle. But the racks and glass door are not included in the self-cleaning - that takes your two hands and lots of elbow grease!

Looking so clean! Feels so nice!

For the racks, I let them soak in hot water in the bathtub for a couple of hours to loosen the tough spots and then started scrubbing them down. Those took quite a while, all the scrubbing and cleaning, but they are virtually spot-free!

clean and looking brand new!

Fruit of the Spirit: Goodness

Memory Verse: Psalm 23:6
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Goodness - Strawberry

What does it mean?
Moral and spiritual excellence shown in kindness. Goodness enables you to do good things to those who hate you and to other believers. Being good and kind to people is letting Jesus Christ shine through you. We are to do those things for God's glory, not to life up ourselves or make us look God, but to be pleasing and honoring to God.

How does Jesus show us an example?
Romans 5:7-8, "For scarcely will one die for a righteous man, yet perhaps for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth (shows) His love toward us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

We are not good or kind without Christ. We are awful sinners and yet Jesus Christ died for us, even though we are far from good. Jesus did many good deeds in the parables He performed, such as healing the paralysed man, restoring the blind man's vision and raising Lazarus from the dead.

How can we show goodness?
What are some ways you can show goodness this week? How about opening the door for other people, letting other go ahead of you in line, getting the mail for your parents, picking up something that someone has dropped, doing your chores or helping one of your friends with homework?

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show goodness on two dye cut strawberries. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the strawberries from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of goodness the previous week. (see first photo for strawberry tree or rather bush, vine, plant - whatever a strawberry grows on! :)) And yes, I know my stawberries are a little out of proportion with the tree - several of the kids thought so as well! :)

Sadness, but joy

Yesterday a young man from our church, only a junior in high school was killed in a car accident. Although I did not know him that well, I have visited with his family on multiple occasions at church. It has been a sad weekend for everyone at church, including our family.

I really understand what his family is feeling right now. There are decisions to make they never thought they would be making. There are events to plan that would never have entered their minds last week.

Yesterday as I was at the church, his little four year old sister was there, smiling, laughing, almost unaware of the situation her family is in. At one point she asked why everyone was so upset. One of the ladies there said they were all sad because her brother wasn't here. And she responded with, "But he's in heaven with Jesus, so that's good."

So simple and sweet. So totally trusting. He's in heaven with Jesus, so why is everyone upset? In her mind, that's a good thing, not a sad thing. If only more of us adults could have that same sweet outlook. And that is the hope we have, the encouragement we lean on, knowing that he is free of pain and suffering in a much better place than we have here on earth. But there is still the sorrow and grief we face here on earth.

The time between now and the funeral is hard, but it really gets hard when the funeral is over and life is expected to go on as normal. And yet it isn't normal. Days go by and the shock of the news and events wears off and reality sets in. That person is not here and he's not coming back. Knowing that he is with the Lord is comforting, but missing having him right here still takes time to get through.

We faced the same thing with Mom and still almost two years later, those days before and after Mom's funeral are vivid memories. Funerals and hearing of someone's loss have whole new significance since we lost Mom. I didn't fully understand or comprehend what if feels like to loose someone close until we went through Mom's sickness and death.

And yet as I really feel for his little sister who probably won't really remember her older brother, I have to smile at her little words, "But he's in heaven with Jesus, so that's good." That has been my encouragement for this weekend!

image courtesy of allposters.com

Whipped Apple Salad

I made this for a funeral dinner at church last week and because it sounded so good, I made another batch for us to eat here at home. It really is more of a dessert than a salad, but it is yummy!!

Whipped Apple Salad

Ingredients:

2 eggs
1 can pineapple tidbits and juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 TBSP cornstarch
3/4 cup cool whip
2 cups chopped apples
2 cups miniature marshmallows
3/4 cup chopped nuts

Directions:

Beat eggs; add pineapple and sugar mixed with the cornstarch. Cook mixture until thick; should resemble pudding thickness. Completely cook and add remaining ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate until serving time. Can also slightly freeze for a very cool salad.

Baked Pizza Mac

This tasted really yummy when I fixed it last week as well as being quick and easy!

Ingredients:
1 can (8 oz.) pizza sauce, divided
1 pkg. boxed macaroni & cheese dinner
1 lb. cooked hamburger
1 egg lightly beaten
1/2 tsp. dried basil leaves
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Make macaroni and cheese dinner as directed on package and set aside. Remove and set aside 1/4 cup of the pizza sauce for later use. Combine prepared macaroni and cheese dinner, two-thirds of the meat, the remaining pizza sauce, egg and seasonings.

Spoon evenly into 9-inch pie plate. Top with the remaining meat and reserved 1/4 cup pizza sauce; sprinkle with cheese.

Bake 15 min. Let stand 5 min. before serving.

Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness

Memory Verse: James 4:17
Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Kindness - Tomato

What does it mean?
Tender concern for others. A desire to treat others with care and respect. Showing care or concern for those who are unkind to you.

I had two buckets, both filled with plastic eggs and had two girls throwing them at each other. One finally decided to dump the bucket on the other, which of course the other one had to dump her bucket. The point of this little episode is that when someone hit you, you want to hit them back. When someone dumps their bucket of eggs on you, you want to do the same to them. Therefore NOT to do it is showing kindness, even when you want to get back at them.

How does Jesus show us an example?
Luke 6:35, "But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.

Jesus showed kindness to those who hated him and were unkind to him. Many of the miracles He did were evidence of the kindness He showed. Peter cut off the ear of the soldier as they were trying to arrest Jesus. Instead of not doing anything, Jesus reaches out and heals the man's ear, showing kindness to His enemy.

How can we show kindness?
What are some ways you can show kindness this week? What about the things you think about? Are they kind or unkind things in your head about others? What about the things you say? Are they helping or hurting your family and friends? What about the things you do? The things you email, text message or write to others, are they showing concern for that person?

One simple thing you can do to show kindness is smile! Just that smile could make someone's day and encourage them.

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show kindness on two dye cut tomatoes. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the tomatoes from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of kindness the previous week. (see first photo for tomato tree or rather pretend vine! :))

Fruit of the Spirit: Patience

Memory Verse: James 1:2-3
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Patience - Pear

What does it mean?
Long suffering; the ability to endure injuries caused by others and willingness to accept painful or irritating situations. Slow to anger. Able to endure hard situations.

To show endurance even when it gets hard, I had two kids come up and push their hands against each other. Each one pushed as hard as they could for as long as they could. It gets hard pushing against someone; it takes endurance.

How does Jesus show us an example?
Isaiah 53:7, "He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.

Jesus was laughed at, mocked, beaten, almost stoned and rejected and yet He did not strike back at those who tormented him. He endured with patience those hard situations.

Noah waited patiently while building the ark, enduring those who laughed and mocked him. He had to wait for the rain to finally fall. Zacharias had to wait to speak until his son, John the Baptist, was born.

How can we show patience?
What are some ways you can show patience this week? Waiting for a special event? What about enduring a really hard subject in school without complaining? Not getting angry with younger brothers and sisters who try your patience or do things to irritate you?

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show patience on two dye cut pears. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the pears from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of patience the previous week. (see first photo for pear tree)

Menu Plan Monday - week of October 13th

The last couple of weeks we have been eating things out of the freezer. I had quite a few things in there we needed to use and on top of that Dad was gone for several meals each week, so our menu has been rather unorganized, especially for my standards! But hopefully this week will be back to normal.

It's been cold, dreary and rainy (hooray for the rain!) the last few days and so yesterday I put potato soup in the crockpot before church. Oh...the house smelled so wonderful when we walked in the door and it tasted fantastic on a day like yesterday! That's one thing I love about Fall and Winter; cooking and eating soup! MmmmmMmmmm!!!!

It is supposed to be chilly this week; staying at 70 degrees or below. Plus through Wednesday there is a 70% chance of rain and it's staying cloudy, so I'm planning soup this week! :)

Here is what we are eating for dinner this week:

Monday - ham, baked potatoes, garlic bread, peas

Tuesday - chicken noodle soup, carrots, pickles (too bad we don't have any of Grandma's!)

Wednesday - hamburger pizza, breadsticks, lettuce salad (I have my pizza dough recipe perfected, but not the breadsticks. I'm still working on that!)

Thursday - baked pizza mac, lettuce salad, banana muffin

Friday - taco salad bowls

Saturday - leftovers

Sunday - whatever is left in the fridge from this week! :)

Check out OrgJunkie for more great recipe ideas!

A fantastic Sunday afternoon

After lunch I settled down on the couch with a blanket, pillow and computer with background noise of football on tv. It would rain for a while, then slow down to only sprinkles and then start really raining again.

Dad watched football with me as well!

Our driveway and front yard became almost a lake at one point. There's a low spot there and whenever it rains fairly hard in a short period of time (rarely does that happen!), that's the first little spot to fill up with water. It's rather nice to sit indoors, all safe and secure and hear the rain falling on the roof.

rain, rain!

and more and more rain!

The moment I woke up this morning and sensed the rainy, cloudy day, I knew today would be an excellent day for baking. Actually any day is a perfect day for baking in my mind; I love to bake! But there are days that are better than others; like cool, cloudy days. Make sense?? Yep, does to me!

A computer is now considered a common kitchen gadget! :)

We really didn't need any cookies, but I couldn't resist. Oatmeal cookies are my favorite, especially the cookie dough. I admit there are delicious baked as well, but nothing can beat fresh oatmeal cookie dough. The dough is so light, white and fluffy (shortening is the key ingredient for the white and fluffiness)!

Part of the reason I crave oatmeal cookie dough is because of the texture. I'm not quite sure why, but I have always had a weakness for white, fluffy baked goodies! I can remember telling Mom that I wanted my birthday cake to be white with white frosting, lots of white, fluffy frosting. Nothing else, just white. To Mom, that sounded rather tasteless. But to me....yum-wonderful!

That's not to say that chocolate is not at all an option, because that's second on the list! But if I go somewhere and there is a choice of white or chocolate cake, usually I will choose the white, fluffy one. Sounds strange, unusual, not normal, I know. But then whoever said I was normal?!?! Wait, don't answer that! :)

Let's add a few rice crispies...

looks very good!

tastes very good too!

I ended up baking one pan full of oatmeal cookies and then freezing the remainder of the dough for future snacking or cookies. Just remember, our freezer also contains frozen cookie dough! :) And while those were baking, I typed up our menu for the week.

Overall it was a relaxing, peaceful Sunday afternoon!

menu planning for the week...

Skittles is never too far away...:)

Just WHAT did I do this week?

Have you ever been busy and then look back over the last few days and wonder what in the world you were so busy with? That was this week. I has a list of things to do on Tuesday and by the time Friday night appeared, I had Tuesday's to-do list crossed off. So much for the rest of my week's plans!

Tuesday:
laundry
answer email
email newsletter
blog posts
edit and print church photos
finish Kid's Club
fold and stuff mailers

Tuesday morning started out as usual. I was able to get my newsletter written, sent out, blog posts written and scheduled and email answered. I was making wonderful progress and felt great for having all of that done by noon and keeping right to my schedule!

Then I became aware of the fact that my header was missing from my online store. I shoved all my other activities to the side and that became my main priority. I ended up spending the entire afternoon fixing that. I diagnosed the problem in about 15 minutes, but finding the correct html file to edit turned out to be quite a chore. But thankfully it's done and all in working order. And I learned that much more about website coding! :)

Because of that issue, I didn't get photos edited for church until late that evening (I had to have those ready Wednesday morning) and therefore did not get my lesson finished for Kid's club until Wednesday afternoon. And Wednesday morning I was in Dodge for a couple of appointments.

Suddenly it was Thursday morning and as I began my morning checking email, I discovered that my desktop had no connection to the Internet. That's been happening every so often and I have been getting a slower-than-normal connection downstairs. I bought a new and faster router and wireless network card a month or so ago and just hadn't had a chance to install it yet.

I could have just fixed the connection in a few minutes to get back online, but decided that I should go ahead and install the new router and get the network card put in. What should have taken an hour at the most, ended up taking all morning and part of the afternoon. But the good part is that my connection is about twice what it was before! And that is sooooo wonderful!!!

Friday morning appears and after my morning is spent doing laundry, cleaning the kitchen, baking banana muffins, answering email and shipping orders, I finally brought out my mailing fliers. When I fill my orders, I usually include different kind of product fliers. And ahead of time I will fold, sort and pack them into plastic bags so all I have to do is grab a bag and stick it in the package.

As I started sorting which fliers I wanted to include for this last quarter of the year, I realized I did not have everything I wanted to include. So I moved that to next week's list, ordered the fliers I needed and moved on to stitching my aprons I started on Monday.

And after spending Friday afternoon stitching those (which I almost have completed and will post pics soon!) and talking on the phone for I don't know how long to a very dear friend (which was needed!), my week is over!

And my plans for working on my new quilt, starting my Christmas table set and designing some marketing mailers has now been moved to next week. And hopefully next week I will have some tangible items that I was able to accomplish! Maybe....:)

Fall is official now at our house!

Last weekend I put up our fall decorations. The fall decorations we have are some of my favorites to put up around the house. I love the blend of red, orange and brown together; it just seems so warm and inviting.

As I was bringing the boxes of fall stuff up from downstairs, I started planning where to put everything. It usually changes from year to year, partly because we like variety and partly because we usually can't recall exactly where we put everything.

I knew for sure that I had to move the little wagon and harvest vegetables from last year's spot because of Skittles. Not only did she knock everything down, but she carried those pumpkins, pears and squash everywhere. Over this past year, I have found numerous little vegetables all over the house.

I thought I had the Skittles-dragging-fall-decorations-everything problem taken care of. Wrong! Every single morning since I put up things on Saturday, she has brought leaves, acorns and pumpkins down to my room and onto my bed.

I started locking her downstairs for the night, but I know the exact moment Dad gets up in the morning. At 5:30 the other morning, she jumped onto the bed, into my face with a strand of leaves. This year leaf carrying must be popular!

Dad says as soon as he opens the door she makes a beeline for the corner of the fireplace with the leaves and fall decorations. And then comes right downstairs with it! Silly cat!

The little wagon and pumpkins are on a high bookcase shelf.

I love this wagon and scarecrow!

This is where Skittles picks out all the leaves and
pumpkins she drags all over the place.

Who knows what she's up to there????

Fruit of the Spirit: Peace

Memory Verse: Psalm 34:14
Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Peace - Apple

What does it mean?
Peace has two meanings in the Bible; an inner peace and outward showing of peace. Only Jesus Christ can give true peace. In the Fruit of the Spirit, the peace that Paul is talking about it an inward peace, knowing that we are secure in our salvation in Jesus Christ. Jesus can give us peace in any situation, keeping our focus on Him.

I had one of the kids come up and we dressed as a soldier leading an army into battle. Instead of the tradtitional armor, we had a flyswatter for a sword, balloon for a spear, gray fabric for armor, a rubber lid for a shield, a cap for a helmet, flip flops and rubber gloves.

I asked the kids if they were wearing this armor, would they feel prepared to go into battle against swords, steel armor and guns? Would they have a peace of mind that they would be ok? Would they feel secure in their armor? No, they would be worried, concerned! Those things wouldn't give them peace, only Jesus Christ can give true peace.

How does Jesus show us an example?
John 14:27, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Jesus tells us that He is the only true source of peace. If we believe in Him, we can trust Him in any situation.

Matthew 5:39, "But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." Jesus gives us the example of showing peace to others. Not to cause conflict and disagree, but to be in peace with each other. Even when you want to get angry and upset with what others have done to you, you can show them the peace you have...the peace Jesus can only give.

Isaiah 26:3, "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You." If we keep our minds and focus on Jesus, he will bring us true peace and security.

How can we show peace to others?
What are some ways you can show peace this week? If you have a really hard test and you have studied as hard as you can and you still don't feel prepared, pray that Jesus will give you peace about that test. You will do the best you can!

What about if someone does something to do that just drives you crazy or makes you angry? Are you going to do the same thing to them or not?

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show peace on two dye cut apples. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the apples from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of peace the previous week. (see first photo for apple tree)

Here's a few pics from our night on peace:

Christina and Abby during the Bible lesson

Looking up Bible verses

Fruit of the Spirit: Joy

Memory Verse: John 15:11
These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.

Bible Lesson:
Fruit of Joy - Cherry

What does it mean?
To be bright and cheerful, exceedingly glad. True joy only comes from the Lord. joy is not based on our circumstances, but in our security and salvation in Jesus Christ. If we are joyful on the inside, it will show in our attitudes and actions. Philippians 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice."
J - Jesus first
O - others second
Y - you last
If we put Jesus and others above ourselves and our desires, we will be joyful!

I asked for two volunteers and gave each one a beautifully wrapped gift. (Getting someone to volunteer is NOT hard to do; usually the whole group has their hands up!) I gave each one a gift and told them to open it. Unknown to them one had a $100 bill in it and the other had nothing but rocks in it.

I told the rest of the group to watch their faces as the two boys opened the gifts. We talked about how you could see the joy on Clayton's face as he saw $100 and the disappointment on Zach's face as he discovered only rocks inside his package. True joy is not controlled by circumstances.

Who is our example?
Paul is a man in the New Testament who suffered many trials and sufferings. he was beaten, put in jail, shipwrecked, put on trial and left for dead. But he didn't stop. He continued on knowing his joy was in the Lord and his salvation. Paul learned to be content in all circumstances. Philippians 4:11, "...for I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content."

How can we show love to others?
What are some ways you can show joy this week? What about when Mom asks you to clean your room or make your bed? Do you complain or argue about doing it or do you do it the first time she tells you? Or do you do it without Mom even having to ask you?

When your teacher gives you a ton of homework, do you complain or rejoice for all the information you are learning? Do you complain about a really hard subject in school or a test you are to take tomorrow? Can you be joyful in the things you have?

I had each of the kids write down one thing they could do this week to show joy on two dye cut cherries. Then they hung them one up in the tree on my sketch pad and the other one they took home to remind them to do it. Next week we will pick the cherries from the tree and see if they produced the fruit of joy the previous week. (see first photo for cherry tree)

Here's a few pics from our night on joy:

Jena reviewing the memory verse.
She wrote the words for the verse on balloons
and taped them to the bulletin board.

The kids would try throwing darts to pop the
balloons in between saying the verse.

Writing down joyful things to do this week on our cherries!

Tackling this month - my storage area! Finished, sorted and organized...finally!

My goal this month in addition to defrosting the freezer, was to clean and organize Dad's den and my storage area. Hip, hip, hooray - it's done!!! An-over-week long ordeal, but done none the less. And just in time since this is the end of September.

I'm so glad to say that I am finished sorting, organizing and cleaning downstairs! Hooray!!! It feels so nice to have everything on shelves and easy to find. And it will be so much easier to get to whatever was in that bottom tote without having to crawl over that whole stack! :)

There's just enough room for walking...a bit tight, but it works!

Everything is labeled and it just "feels" so organized! I was even able to get everything out of Krissa's room and onto those shelves! Won't she be surprised?!?! I'll still use her room til she comes home. I wouldn't want that space to just sit!


I even cleaned/organized Dad's bookcase and office area. Filed some books and paperwork, dusted and put some things away that were just sitting.